This invention relates generally to air evacuation systems and methods for lining a container, and more particularly, to air evacuation systems and methods for lining a container with a flexible liner.
Many businesses package products or waste materials before shipping the products or materials to other locations. Specifically, these businesses package the products or materials into containers for shipping and transportation. In at least some of these cases, the products or materials are packaged in containers lined with a flexible or plastic liner to reduce spoiling or spillage of the products or materials. For example, a corrugated container lined with a plastic liner may be used for shipping certain products or materials wherein the plastic liner is utilized to reduce spoilage of the products or leakage of the products through the corrugated container.
In at least some known applications of placing a flexible liner within a container, an operator will manually erect the container and then position the liner by hand within the container. This process can be time consuming and result in increased labor costs. Moreover, in at least some cases, the operator may fail to properly position the liner within the container (e.g., fully opening and expanding the liner within the container), which may result in reducing the amount of actual materials that can be loaded into the container or may result in damage to the liner when loading the materials into the container. In fact, in at least some know cases, an improperly positioned liner within a container may result in the liner being punctured during the loading of the material into the container, and thus, allowing the materials to spoil or leak through the container.
In response to the additional labor costs and improper positioning of a liner within a container, at least some known machines have been developed to aid in the lining of such containers. At least some known machines automate the lining process by physically placing the liner within the container. However, these machines require complex mechanical features and components. Specifically, mechanical arms are used to place the liner into the container along the sides and bottom walls of the container. At least some other known machines automate the lining process by placing the liner along the top of the container and blowing the liner into the container. At least some other known machines automate the lining process by removing the air between the liner and the container to draw the liner against the interior of the container. At least one of these known machines positions a vacuum plenum beneath an opened bottom portion of the container, and pulls the air from the container cavity through the open bottom portion of the container. However, because the container is formed after the liner is positioned within the container, the liner is not fully seated against the interior surfaces of the container.